But Facebook wants people to condemn the gory clips rather than celebrate or encourage them.

"Facebook has long been a place where people turn to share their experiences, particularly when they're connected to controversial events on the ground, such as human rights abuses, acts of terrorism and other violent events," a Facebook Australian spokesman told AAP.

"If they were being celebrated, or the actions in them encouraged, our approach would be different."

Facebook put a temporary ban on videos featuring extreme graphic violence in May after the Family Online Safety Institute - a member of its Safety Advisory Board - complained that decapitation clips "crossed a line", especially given that children as young as 13 are allowed to join Facebook.

The ban was made after a one-minute long video was uploaded showing a woman being beheaded by a masked man, thought to be from Mexico. A second video clip showed the execution of two men with a chainsaw and knife, reported to be drug smugglers for a Mexican cartel, has also been shared on the network.

SHOULD FACEBOOK ALLOW GRAPHIC VIDEOS? COMMENT BELOW

"Since some people object to graphic videos of this nature, we are working to give people additional control over the content they see," the US company added.

"This may include warning them in advance that the image they are about to see contains graphic content."

The BBC reported it was alerted to Facebook's change in policy by a reader who said the company was refusing to remove a page showing a clip of a masked man killing a woman, which is believed to have been filmed in Mexico.

Decapitation videos are available elsewhere on the net - including on Google's YouTube - but critics have raised concern that Facebook's news feeds and other sharing functions mean it is particularly adept at spreading such material.

A Facebook Australia spokesman confirmed the new rules apply globally.

The social media site is said to have about 1.15 billion members worldwide and about nine million daily users in Australia.

News of Facebook's change of heart emerged after complaints that a video was being viewed and shared on the site showing a masked man killing a woman, which is believed to have been filmed in Mexico.

Some other social networking sites do allow fairly graphic material to be viewed and shared among users - though most, including Facebook, operate complaint mechanisms whereby potentially offensive material can be reviewed and removed.

The relaxation of Facebook's rules may be a move to bring it into line with the more liberal approach of some other social network sites.

Facebook's current rules forbid users sharing information that could be deemed threatening to others, as well as material that includes hate speech or is sexually explicit.

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